ALBANY - The first time Luke Devlin hit the floor, following his back surgery in the offseason, he was nervous.

After a few bumps from teammates, Devlin realized his worst fears were behind him.

More than four months after offseason surgery, Devlin is getting ready for the 2011-12 season to begin.

“I’m feeling real good in practice,” he said, before Wednesday's practice.

The health of Devlin and fellow sophomore John Puk (Achilles) is critical to the Great Danes' chances of having a good year.

Both players currently feel good and barring something unforeseen the two will be in the starting lineup on Friday evening, when UAlbany takes on No. 11 Pittsburgh. (The game can be seen on SNY)

Devlin stopped short of calling himself 100 percent on Wednesday. He said the most of his problem is with his training.

“I’ve put in a lot of work off of the court for it,” he said.

As for how Devlin is actually affected on the floor, he said his game has been slower to return on the offensive end.

“Offensively is where it’s affecting it most,” he said. “Defense is all about effort and things like that, but offense is more about touch and getting back into game form.”

Puk said he feels good and hopes he will stay healthy throughout the season.

“Hopefully that holds up,” he said.